Ian Smith
There are approximately 1,957 people named Ian Smith living in the United States today. That makes this name combination rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 175,143 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Ian with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Smith. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
1,957
1 in 175,143
Named Ian
247K
Alive today
Named Smith
2.7M
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 247K
Rarity: Common
Gender: Male
Peak year: 2005
Average age: 26
Top Census group: White (69.1%)
Estimated bearers: 2.7M
Rarity: Very Common
Census rank: #1
Per 100K: 792.79
Top ancestry: White (68.0%)
First name trend
Ian: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Ian. The peak year was 2005 with 6,704 births. The average person named Ian today is 26 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ian
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Ian, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 69.1%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Ian described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Ian at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White69.1% · 153,977
- Hispanic or Latino15.6% · 34,759
- Black or African American5.4% · 11,979
- Two or more races5.2% · 11,533
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.2% · 9,361
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 1,204
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Smith surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Smith, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 68.0%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname Smith described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname Smith at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White68.0% · 1,611,236
- Black or African American22.6% · 535,967
- Two or more races4.4% · 103,611
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 82,947
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 19,744
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16,139
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Ian has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0720% of the US population, based on 246,843 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Ian right now.
The surname Smith appears at a rate of 792.79 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.7928%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1,957 people with the full name Ian Smith. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Ian
Related
Other people with the surname Smith
FAQ
Ian Smith: questions and answers
How many people are named Ian Smith?
We estimate approximately 1,957 people in the United States share the full name Ian Smith. That works out to about 1 in 175,143 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0720%) with the surname frequency (792.79 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Ian Smith?
We classify Ian Smith as "Rare". About 1 in 175,143 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Ian a male or female name?
Ian is predominantly male. Out of 254,514 total SSA registrations, 99.7% were male and 0.3% were female. See the full Ian profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How many Americans are named Ian Smith?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.